Peril
An ethnic enclave turned survivor colony, Peril is the oldest settlement in Rapid City. Formerly an average neighborhood, it has taken on imperial architectural features thanks to it's most notable residents. History Asian settlers had been arriving in Rapid City and the greater United States since the mid-1800s, and often settled near each other in neighborhoods that would often become known as "chinatowns", though other national prefixes were attached depending on national origin. During the rising tensions with China in the middle of the 21st century however, saw discrimination return in force, and segregation again became prevalent. This would be the case in Rapid City, where the Asian neighborhoods would start to see harassment and vandalism. When the Great War occurred, Peril was often the target of police raids and under curfew, so when the bombs fell, an angry mob came to attack Peril. While the mob was repelled by a local gang, Peril still suffered from the secondary effects of the bombing, such as radiation and The Black Rain. While the neighborhood survived mostly intact, though it's inhabitants became ghouls. Peril would be alone in the ruins for a time, with the residents repairing and mending it and their differences. This peace ended in 2090, with the arrival of raiders and scavengers into the ruins. While many residents and the Yens hoped that they could trade with the latter group, they proved biased against ghouls, and attacked Peril several times, leading the neighborhood to go onto lock-down until 2093. It was in that year that the population increased by 23, as the local gang captured a settler party and brought them there as 'guests.' Despite the pre-war racial discrimination they endured, the Majority of residents recognized that they would have to accommodate the white members if they wanted the Asians to stay, as the ghouls couldn't breed. At the same time, the increase in population would put an added strain on the settlement's scavenging abilities. To combat this, one group of scavers trapped and brought back two pairs of Jackalope, and set them loose in a blocked-in backyard in July. At the same time, several residents began to hunt the rats and roaches that dwelled in the sewers, providing meat while the jackalopes bred. This combination eased the strain on the settlement's resources, and they made it through the winter without much strain. By 2097 the Jackalope warren was ready to harvest, and one section of the pen was walled off to control the number of rats there. As time went on Peril began to fortify itself, with further wall and towers constructed. It would it also maintain socially, with games of cards, pai-gow and mahjong common, as well as basketball. The ghouls crooned over the children of the human settlers when they were born, watching over them as they grew. Peril grew again in 2110 after the Yen Boys robbed a scavenger camp, with the tale of it attracting raiders interested in joining. This came to a head in early 2111 just after Thaw, when it was discovered a trio of the recruits had raped on of the earlier humans for an entire night. The townspeople were enraged and took up arms, determined to drive out these 'foreign' raiders. Widespread violence was avoided only by the timely intervention of the Yens, who took the trio and hanged them from the main gate. The mob dispersed but tensions remained high for several years, and the neighborhood elders began questioning the Yens' decisions. That subsided in late 2120 when the leader of the Yens died. Well liked despite his hypocritical stance on outsiders, a period of mourning was declared for three weeks. The new warlord first ordered the further expansion of the settlement walls before returning to the warpath, sharing the spoils with the community. Most residents thought their time had arrived finally, but these dreams were smashed in 2142, when a mercenary force besieged Peril, destroying much of the town before departing. The inhabitants were despondent over the death and destruction, and after tending to their dead, the elders demanded that the Yens set themselves apart from the community as punishment, which was agreed to. The rest of the century was spent rebuilding and mourning, with many trying to channel their grief into productive uses for the community. These took the form of recapturing their food sources, and plant gardens. Peril received a share of the Yen's loot as they began raiding again in the 2170s. A semblance of normalcy returned around 2187 and settled by the dawn of the 2200s. This was disturbed by another wave of recruits in the early years of the century, though this time the elders took a firmer stand and Huan was forced to dispose of most of these raiders. The raiders that were allowed in were then sequestered along with the Yens, so the townspeople still felt free to walk the streets. By this point humans outnumbered the ghouls for the first time since The War, thanks to the settlements near destruction in the 2140s. As a result this created a more east-Asian feel in Peril as the humans believed the Asian-unity and anti-outsider curriculum taught to them. To compound this, they started to construct gateways and imitation tile roofs, along with gowns from looted cloth. They reacted positively to the construction of a chem-lab in 2218 by the Yens, hoping to addict the whites again. This wouldn't last longer than a few years however, before the elders told Huan to shut it down, as addiction was slipping into the community. After the lab shut down things were peaceful in Peril for another decade until in a short space a regulator patrol was killed just outside the gates, and then a brothel was made to exploit the prisoners from the attack. Despite the brothel being located outside the walls, the fact that it was kept secret and that a few well-informed residents had visited it, caused an uproar. The controversy revealed an unspoken fact however, that the gender ratio in Peril was 3:1 males. This was due both to genetic chance, and the cultural adoption of Asiatics preferences for boys. After much discussion the elders and Huan decided to keep the brothel open, though derided the man who opened it. Regardless of the debate however, outsiders continued to visit, leaving money and goods that found their way inside town. Men from Peril also visited discreetly, and life continued relatively peacefully for a time. This changed in 2251 with the arrival of Custer's American Army to the ruins. The people were divided over the news, but the elders finally decided to send an envoy to these whites. When the envoy was shot at however, the elders put the town on a war footing. While a siege was thought to occur soon, an attack failed to materialize, and the caution was relaxed in 2255, though the scavers rarely ventured past their previous claims for several months. This changed in 2258, when Vault 52 opened beneath Rapid City and waves of chem-addicts swept through the city, destroying or displacing the other crews, and allowing the people of Peril to expand. The population grew in the 2260s causing an increase of farming and animal breeding to keep up with demand. This was accomplished by collapsing a derelict apartment building, which also provided more building material for the walls around the town. The time since has been a bountiful one for Peril, as the outsiders fight amongst themselves, allowing the Asians to have breathing room and scavenge. The current generation of humans has never known a siege like the ghouls, and spirits are high. Layout Peril occupies six square blocks in Rapid City, with the streets decorated with various Asiatic trappings. Walls surround the perimeter of Peril, with a small gate in the 'main' wall facing south, and several look-out posts on various rooftops. There are several gardens in whatever patches of bare earth the residents can find. A few animal pens also fill the available space of backyards, providing critical protein and furs to the residents. Off in a corner of the settlement in the encampment of the Yen Boys, both the protectors of the community, but also the bringers of outside trouble Government Peril is lead by the community elders, who are the eldest residents of the community. This takes the form of a council made of both ghouls and humans that meet to decide on issues that effect the community. While they wielded considerably influence just after The War, they have been marginalized over time by the warlords of the Yens, who in practice control contact with the outside world. Culture Peril is a blend of several different ideologies; anti-outsider; pro-asian; exploitation of outsiders, and half-remembered stereotypes and misconceptions from before The War. At the same time, it is forced to violate several of these beliefs to survive; it needs outsiders to ensure a stable population, many of whom aren't asian, and while they value boys over girls, they are acutely aware of the need for females if they want to maintain their population. Economy Peril primarily operates on scavenging and subsistence farming. The former is carried out by the Yen Boys when aren't raiding, though a few of the civilians also scavenge. The farming is a mix of animal products and crops, with pig-rats and Jackalope providing most of the meat, and mut-fruit, tomato and razor-grain providing the nutrients, though they are prone to small harvests due to soil depletion, causing crop rotation to be implemented and bags of fertilizer being prized targets for the scavengers. There is a handful of private enterprises in Peril, primarily run by scavengers, and provide simple comforts such as drink, food, and gambling. Category:Badlands Category:Communities